By Lisa Roose-Church
Livingston County Daily Press & Argus
HOWELL, Mich. (AP) -- The thin blue line runs thick in Kourtney-Chloe DeBottis' veins.
DeBottis wants a career in law enforcement, specifically working for the Drug Enforcement Agency or FBI. She would be the third generation of her family to enter law enforcement.
Her paternal grandfather is a retired Southfield officer; her maternal grandfather was an officer with the St. Louis Police Department before transferring to the Bay City Fire Department, from which he has since retired. Both her parents are police officers, and her older brother is working toward a degree in criminal justice at Saginaw Valley State University -- the same path she plans to pursue.
"I want to be able to love my job," the 17-year-old Howell High School student said.
DeBottis received her first taste of what a career in law enforcement would feel like when she participated in a recent Michigan State Police Student Trooper Academy. American Legion Devereaux Post 141 in Howell Township sponsored DeBottis' participation.
Her self-confidence level was high when she stepped into the state police's Training Academy in Dimondale, but nerves sent her stomach fluttering.
After spending a few minutes exchanging pleasantries, the 52-member class was ordered to stand at attention. Forty-eight students made it to graduation.
"You stood straight, your eyes ahead," DeBottis explained. "You could not look around. If you did, the instructor got right in your face. You could blink and breathe; that's it. It was insane."
They were taught to march and put into smaller units. DeBottis was selected as commander of her unit for the first two days, which added to her stress level. As commander, she was responsible for ensuring her unit was on time, in order and doing things right.
DeBottis worried if she'd live up to what she said her mother's "high standards."
"I was in charge of everyone; I was so stressed," she said, explaining that anyone misbehaving meant she was held responsible.
The student troopers were put through a mini-crash course of what full-fledged trooper recruits experience in the 21-week training school.
Lessons included water safety, gun handling, polygraphs, first aid, narcotics, criminal law, defensive tactics, crash investigations and an overview of the various specialties troopers can select, such as the dive team. They also tried the driving course, but certified troopers operated the police cruisers.
The physical training portion of the training was an eye-opener.
"Do you know how many exercises you can do with a metal chair? I do," she laughed, demonstrating how a person can hold a folded metal chair with one arm extended -- something she said made her muscles ache and her arm shake.
All in all, DeBottis said the training was just as she hoped it would be and that it reinforced her dream to pursue a career in law enforcement.
"I wondered how I could do this for 21 weeks," she admitted. "It would be 21 weeks of hell for a career of fun."
Published: Thu, Dec 9, 2010
